AROUND NYC BASEBALL
Steve Cohen signed Juan Soto, but David Stearns signed Clay Holmes, in what may have been the New York Mets shrewdest move of the off-season. Holmes is 5-3 with a 2.98 ERA with 56 strikeouts in 60.1 innings and making the conversion from reliever to starter look easy, pitching at least 5 innings in his last 9 starts. Plus, he’s being paid $13m per year, a bargain considering he’s earning closer – not starter – money.
In 2024, the New York Yankees had four players with an OPS above .750 (Aaron Judge, Juan Soto, Jazz Chisholm, Jr. and Giancarlo Stanton). Through 53 games, they have seven (Judge, Paul Goldschmidt, Trent Grisham, Ben Rice, Cody Bellinger, Anthony Volpe, Jasson Dominguez). This lends credence to the theory that the Yankees pivot after losing Soto, gave them a deeper, more balanced lineup.
ICYMI “Aaron Judge: Building a Monument Park Resume with All-Time Stats”
AROUND NYC BASKETBALL
Sean Marks has an interesting decision on his hands. Does he build the Brooklyn Nets completely through the draft like Detroit and Oklahoma City? Or does he jump back into the Big 3 waters like Phoenix and the Los Angeles Clippers. Our guess is he’s going to try the Cleveland way and bring in a veteran star to build around. Either way, expect to be deluged with Giannis Antetokounmpo rumors as soon as the NBA Finals conclude.
During the regular season, the New York Knicks averaged 27.5 assists. During the playoffs, they are down to 19.7. Not surprisingly, scoring is also down from 115.8 ppg to 108.8. That’s why it’s crucial for Jalen Brunson to get the ball moving, and his guys going early against the high-scoring Indiana Pacers tonight in Game 4.
We are only 3 games into the WNBA season, but offseason acquisition Natasha Cloud has already had a major impact on the New York Liberty. Cloud, 33, is leading the Liberty in points (18.7), assists (7.7) and steals (3.3). Plus, came up big defensively on Caitlin Clark during a controversial no-call in the Liberty’s win over the Indiana Fever.
ICYMI “4 Things Ahead of Knicks/Pacers Eastern Conference Finals”
AROUND NYC FOOTBALL
To illustrate why I am not a fan of lame duck coaches, the NFL season is still 100 days away, and there’s already speculation about when Brian Daboll will make the switch from Russell Wilson to rookie Jaxson Dart to save his job. John Mara trusted New York Giants GM Joe Schoen and Daboll to draft Dart, he should extend them each by one season to give them a chance to prove it was the right decision.
Aaron Glenn didn’t exactly give away state secrets when he said that he wants to get the ball to Garrett Wilson “as much as possible” during the 2025 season. The best teams feed their top playmakers. For the New York Jets that’s Wilson and Breece Hall. With the hopes that someone, preferably rookie TE Mason Taylor, giving them a strong third option.
ICYMI “New York Jets: Early 53-Man Roster Projection”
AROUND NYC HOCKEY
After 927 games across 14 seasons for 6 different NHL teams, New Jersey Devils Slovakian forward Tomas Tatar is heading back to Europe to play for EV Zug of Switzerland’s National League. Tatar had 227 goals in his NHL career.
Mathieu Darche spent six years in the Tampa Bay Lightning front office before being hired last week as the New York Islanders Executive Vice President & General Manager. During his time with the Lightning, they’ve only had two first round picks in six drafts. Now, Darche controls the keys to this year’s NHL Draft with the first overall pick on June 27.
On breakup day, Alexis Lafreniere was asked if he was going to represent Team Canada in the 2025 World Championships. Lafreniere said, “Talking to my agent… we’re thinking about it”. Now, if something came up like the injury that cost Brett Berard a chance to play for eventual champion Team USA, that would make sense. If he simply didn’t want to play alongside veteran Stanley Cup winners Sidney Crosby, Nate MacKinnon and Brayden Schenn, let’s hope Chris Dury and Mike Sullivan took notice as they strategize on how to shed salary and change the New York Rangers culture in 2025-26.
ICYMI “No State Taxes: The True Star of the 2025 NHL Trading Deadline”
